A distinctive feature of the Australian federal system is that the Commonwealth (Australian) Government levies and collects all income tax, from individuals as well as from enterprises. The Commonwealth Government also collects taxes on the provision of goods and services, including: the Goods and Services Tax (GST); taxes on the use of goods and performance of activities; and some taxes on employers' payrolls. The taxation revenue base of state and territory governments consists of taxes on: property; employers' payrolls; and the provision and use of goods and services. The sole source of taxation revenue for local governments is taxes on property.

Total taxation revenue collected in Australia in 2005-06 was $297,942 million (m), an increase of 6.9% compared with 2004-05 (table 28.7). Of this, $176,194m (59.1%) was for taxes on income and $75,994m (25.5%) for taxes on the provision of goods and services.

Commonwealth Government taxation revenue, including taxes from the other levels of government and Commonwealth public corporations, rose from $229,131m in 2004-05 to $245,223m in 2005-06, an increase of 7.0%. In 2005-06, Commonwealth Government taxation represented 82.3% of taxation revenue for all levels of government.

State government taxation revenue increased by 6.2%, from $41,649m in 2004-05 to $44,235m in 2005-06. In 2005-06 taxes on property were the single largest taxation revenue source for state governments (38.3%), followed by employers' payroll taxes (29.6%). The revenue base of state and territory governments is supplemented by the distribution of grants from the Commonwealth Government, which includes the allocation of GST revenue.

Australian residents paid an average of $14,571 in tax in 2005-06, an increase of 5.5% compared with 2004-05 (table 28.8). The amount of Commonwealth Government taxation per person rose by 5.6% from $11,340 in 2004-05 to $11,976 in 2005-06. State and territory governments and local councils combined charged residents an average of $2,594 a year in property taxes, stamp duty, gambling taxes, payroll and other taxes in 2005-06. This was an increase of 5.0% compared with that collected in 2004-05.

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